The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer

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There are things no one knew were possiblebefore someone accomplished them: capital “I” Impossible feats. Every person also has their ownpersonal “impossibles”:the things that you consider outside the scope of your individual capabilities and possibilities – whether that’s escaping poverty or becoming a professional artist or athlete.The highest and most fulfilling goal you can aspire to in life is to push the boundaries of your personal “impossible.”Some peoplewho persevere in their pursuit of personalimpossibles,long-term, end up pushing the boundaries of what goals humanity deems to be achievable. Treat fear like a playmate,” suggests Ulmer. “This transforms the emotion from a problem to be solved into a resource to be savored.”

The Art of Building the Impossible | The New Yorker The Art of Building the Impossible | The New Yorker

Flow is defined as “an optimal state of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best.”10 It is the state created by evolution to enable peak performance. This is why, in every domain, whenever the impossible becomes possible, flow always plays a starring role. The neurobiology of flow is the mechanism beneath the art of impossible. Happiness becomes untethered to income, because once we can meet our basic needs, the lure of all the stuff it took to meet them, begins to lose its luster. Once extrinsic drivers start to fade, intrinsic drivers take over.” Endorphins and anandamide, our final two pleasure chemicals, are pain-killing bliss producers. They’re both heavy-duty stress relievers, replacing the weight of the everyday with a euphoric sense of relaxed happiness. It’s that “all is right in the world” sensation that shows up during experiences like runner’s high, or when we catch our second wind.La motivación es un mensaje. Es el cerebro diciendo: Oye, levántate del sofá, haz esta cosa, es superimportante para tu supervivencia. Para enviar este mensaje, el cerebro se apoya en cuatro componentes básicos: la neuroquímica y la neuroelectricidad, que son los mensajes propiamente dichos, y la neuroanatomía y las redes, que son los lugares donde se envían y reciben esos mensajes.” Thus, at this point in the process, it’s time to make friends. But walk before you run. Taking things public doesn’t require giving a TED Talk. Simple conversations with strangers will get things going. Walk into your neighborhood bar, start chatting with whoever sits next to you, and teach them about the stuff you’ve been teaching yourself. Inspirational and aspirational, pragmatic and accessible, The Art of Impossible is a life-changing experience disguised as a how-to manual for peak performance that anyone can use to shoot for the stars . . . space-suit, not included. The technical language that surrounds a subject is the second place to put your attention. Why? Jargon, while annoying, is annoyingly precise. Often, large chunks of the explanation of a subject are contained within the technical language that surrounds that subject. The obvious example is “human” versus “Homo sapiens.” Both terms point in the same direction, but the Latin version not only contains the thing (a human) but also its evolutionary history (genus and species), plus a little color commentary (apparently, someone once thought we were “wise apes”). Thus, understanding a subject’s insider parlance allows you to see the ideas and the connective tissue that holds these ideas together. Homo sapiens not only names the thing but tells you that the thing descended from apes and is smarter than apes, or, at least, thinks it’s smarter than apes.

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Brilliant. A helpful and/or enlightening book that, in addition to meeting the highest standards in all pertinent aspects, stands out even among the best. Often an instant classic and must-read for everyone. Serotonin is a calming, peaceful chemical that provides a gentle lift in mood.13 It’s that satiated feeling that comes after a good meal or a great orgasm, and it’s partially responsible for that post-meal/post-coital urge to take a nap. It also appears to play a role in satisfaction and contentment, that feeling of a job well done.Writers may find this book particularly beneficial because Kotler relies heavily on anecdotes from his own work to clarify and explain the points under discussion. By contrast, “Rise of Superman” relied almost exclusively on stories from extreme sports athletes, and “Stealing Fire” drew on silicone valley and the special forces heavily for examples. I actually enjoyed that Kotler spoke from his own experience. As someone who has read a fair number of books on peak performance, I’ve seen a lot of the same stories repeated within popular books. That said, readers who haven’t read much on the topic may wish the book had a broader set of narrative examples and less definitional / conceptual discussion. The author may be aware that many of his readers will have fatigue from reading the same stories and examples. When Kotler does mention such widely-discussed examples (e.g. Steve Jobs putting bathrooms in the Pixar building in a central location that created cross-pollination of people on different projects) he does so briefly and without preaching to the choir. This book is a tour de force of high performance. It’s an essential resource for those looking to align their curiosity, passion, and purpose to have not just a little more flow and creativity in their lives but to have a lot more flow and creativity. Want to learn how to take your innovation to seemingly impossible heights? Steven Kotler will teach you how. Scott Barry Kaufman